Pubdate: Mon, 25 Apr 2016
Source: Toronto Star (CN ON)
Page: A12
Copyright: 2016 The Toronto Star
Contact:  http://www.thestar.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/456

THIS ISN'T THE BETTER WAY

Randomly testing workers is unjustified since the transit commission
already conducts fairly extensive screening

If the Toronto Transit Commission had proof of a serious drug or
alcohol problem among its staff - something putting public safety at
significant risk - it would have good reason to institute mandatory
screening for impairment. But that's not the case.

Yet, even so, the TTC still seems bent on subjecting thousands of
people to random drug and alcohol testing. CEO Andy Byford sent a
letter to employees this past week notifying them that funding had
been approved last month and that a screening program would proceed.

It's a seriously misguided policy. As many as 10,000 people would be
subject, on a random basis, to breathalyzer tests for alcohol, and
mouth swab screening for drugs such as marijuana or cocaine. That
would sacrifice workers' right to privacy on a grand scale, in return
for minimal safety benefits.

The intrusive approach is especially unjustified given that the TTC
already indulges in fairly extensive screening. According to Byford,
the commission has a fitness-for-duty policy that tests people for
drug or alcohol impairment after a serious incident; for "reasonable
cause" (such as appearing to be drunk); if they're returning from
rehab; and before they're hired. This covers all drivers, maintenance
staff, anyone operating heavy machinery, all managers responsible for
such workers and TTC executives including Byford.

The new plan calls for subjecting them to random screening as
well.

Despite the existing program and a staff of 14,000, the TTC has
recorded just six cases of impairment at work, or refusal to take the
test, so far this year. That's a tiny fraction of a large labour
force. In 2015, there were 30 such cases and the year before that
there were only 16.

Ideally there should be none, in any Ontario workplace. The TTC is
right in trying to discourage on-the-job impairment. But imposing a
random screening program on thousands of innocent people is the wrong
way to proceed.

Byford made a point of assuring employees that the testing program
will only check for impairment while at work. What people choose to do
in their free time would be considered none of the TTC's business. The
employer would not be told, for example, if someone on a Monday
morning showed traces of having smoked marijuana on Sunday night, as
long as they were no longer impaired.

No doubt, management means well. But given the times in which we live
- - with database leaks occurring with dismal frequency - staff can be
forgiven for worrying that such private information might be shared.

The way this policy has been pushed forward is hardly designed to win
workers' trust. The Amalgamated Transit Union is firmly opposed and
the TTC's fitness-for-duty policy has been the subject of ongoing
arbitration for more than three years. Rather than waiting for a
ruling, the TTC has decided to press ahead with random testing.

The arbitration process is, indeed, taking too long and management's
impatience is understandable. But there's no emergency here demanding
immediate action.

It's almost as if the transit authority is challenging the union to
take this to court. But that would be a sorely misguided strategy. It
would poison labour relations instead of fostering co-operation in the
workplace. And a judge concerned about civil liberties and unimpressed
by the meagre rationale for random testing might rule against the commission.

The TTC's better course is to drop random testing and see the
arbitration process through.  
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D